Deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery has been performed in over 75,000 people worldwide, and has been shown to be an effective treatment for Parkinson's disease, tremor, dystonia, epilepsy, depression, Tourette's syndrome, and obsessive compulsive disorder. We review current and emerging evidence for the role of DBS in the management of a range of neurological and psychiatric conditions, and discuss the technical and practical aspects of performing DBS surgery. In the future, evolution of DBS technology may depend on several key areas, including better scientific understanding of its underlying mechanism of action, advances in high-spatial resolution imaging and development of novel electrophysiological and neurotransmitter microsensor systems. Such developments could form the basis of an intelligent closed-loop DBS system with feedback-guided neuromodulation to optimize both electrode placement and therapeutic efficacy.
Brain ; Deep Brain Stimulation ; Depression ; Dystonia ; Electrodes ; Epilepsy ; Neurotransmitter Agents ; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder ; Parkinson Disease ; Tourette Syndrome ; Tremor

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery has been performed in over 75,000 people worldwide, and has been shown to be an effective treatment for Parkinson's disease, tremor, dystonia, epilepsy, depression, Tourette's syndrome, and obsessive compulsive disorder. We review current and emerging evidence for the role of DBS in the management of a range of neurological and psychiatric conditions, and discuss the technical and practical aspects of performing DBS surgery. In the future, evolution of DBS technology may depend on several key areas, including better scientific understanding of its underlying mechanism of action, advances in high-spatial resolution imaging and development of novel electrophysiological and neurotransmitter microsensor systems. Such developments could form the basis of an intelligent closed-loop DBS system with feedback-guided neuromodulation to optimize both electrode placement and therapeutic efficacy.
Brain ; Deep Brain Stimulation ; Depression ; Dystonia ; Electrodes ; Epilepsy ; Neurotransmitter Agents ; Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder ; Parkinson Disease ; Tourette Syndrome ; Tremor

Itching is a common clinical symptom of skin disease that significantly affects a patient's quality of life. Transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) receptors of keratinocytes and peripheral nerve fibers in skin are involved in the regulation of itching as well as pain. In this study, we investigated whether curcumin, which acts on TRPV1 receptors, affects histamine-induced itching in mice, using behavioral tests and electrophysiological approaches. We found that histamine-induced itching was blocked by topical application of curcumin in a concentration-dependent manner. In ex-vivo recordings, histamine-induced discharges of peripheral nerves were reduced by the application of curcumin, indicating that curcumin acts directly on peripheral nerves. Additionally, curcumin blocked the histamine-induced inward current via activation of TRPV1 (curcumin IC₅₀=523 nM). However, it did not alter chloroquine-induced itching behavior in mice, which is associated with transient receptor potential ankyrin 1 (TRPA1). Taken together, our results suggest that histamine-induced itching can be blocked by topical application of curcumin through the inhibitory action of curcumin on TRPV1 receptors in peripheral nerves.
Animals ; Ankyrins ; Behavior Rating Scale ; Curcumin* ; Histamine ; Keratinocytes ; Mice* ; Peripheral Nerves ; Pruritus* ; Quality of Life ; Skin ; Skin Diseases